Committee on Petitions Ordinary meeting
23 June 2026
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PETI European Parliament
Follow its sittings00:30 - 01:37
Speaker 1
No dobrze, szanowni państwo, Komisja Petycji sporządza coroczne sprawozdanie zgodnie z artykułem 233 ustęp 7 regulaminu Parlamentu. Na dzisiejszym posiedzeniu komisja rozpatrzy projekt sprawozdania z działalności Komisji Petycji w 2025 roku. Sprawozdawcą jest pan poseł Nils Ušakovs, pan wiceprzewodniczący. Pragnę poinformować, że sprawozdawca i kontrsprawozdawcy należycie wypełnili i opublikowali deklaracje dotyczące konfliktu interesów, a także ukończyli obowiązkowe szkolenie na temat zapobiegania konfliktom i molestowaniu w miejscu pracy oraz właściwego zarządzania biurem, a także opublikowali informacje na ten temat. W związku z tym kwalifikują się do wyznaczenia na sprawozdawcę i kontrsprawozdawców.
I przekazuję niezwłocznie głos sprawozdawcy, aby przedstawił sprawozdanie. My dear colleagues, Vice-President Ušakovs, the floor is yours.
01:37 - 08:03
Speaker 2
Thank you, Chair. Dear Chair, dear colleagues, I'm pleased to present the annual report on the activities of the Committee on Petitions for 2025. First of all, I would like to thank the committee secretariat for its excellent support and the good cooperation throughout the year. The Committee on Petitions has a unique role within the European Parliament. It serves as a direct link between European citizens and the European institutions, giving people a voice and ensuring that their concerns can be heard at the European level.
The year 2025 was particularly remarkable. The committee received 2,971 petitions, an increase of almost 96% compared to 2024. This is more than double the number received in 2023 and the highest annual figure since 2014. This significant increase shows that more and more citizens are aware of their right to petition the European Parliament and that they continue to see the committee as an important channel for democratic participation and accountability. At the same time, this growing workload is also creates challenges and underlines the need for sufficient administrative and technical resources to ensure that petitions can be handled efficiently and with the quality citizens expect.
Despite this increase, the number of petitions remains relatively small compared to the European Union's population of around 450 million citizens. This shows that we still need to do more to raise awareness about this important democratic instrument. The digitalization of the petitions process continued in 2025. The Petitions Web Portal remains the main channel for submitting petitions, accounting for 88% of all submissions compared to 82% in 2024. Further improvements to accessibility and modernized infrastructure help make the platform more inclusive and user-friendly.
The committee also maintained an efficient handling of petitions. More than 81% of the petitions received in 2025 were already closed within the same year. At the same time, 36.1% of petitions were declared inadmissible, highlighting the need to better inform citizens about the areas in which the European Union has its competence. Looking at the issues raised by citizens, environmental concerns remained the most important topic, representing almost 19% of all petitions. Citizens expressed concerns about biodiversity, pollution, air quality, waste management, water protection, and climate-related risks.
We also saw notable increases in petitions concerning consumer rights, justice, health, financial services, external relations, and digital issues. In particular, citizens showed growing concern about the protection of minors online, artificial intelligence, privacy, and the safety of digital environments. One especially important development was the sharp increase in petitions related to external relations, international humanitarian law, and armed conflicts. The number of such petitions more than doubled, rising from 96 in 2024 to 200 in 2025. These petitions reflected citizens' concerns about major geopolitical developments and the role of the European Union in responding to global challenges.
Topics discussed included democracy and the rule of law, as well as broader concerns related to human rights, international humanitarian law, and the protection of civilians affected by armed conflicts. The committee also received petitions concerning alleged violations of fundamental rights and the rule of law in several third countries, including issues related to Ukraine and the wider consequences of geopolitical instability. These petitions demonstrate that citizens increasingly see the European Parliament not only as a guardian of EU law, but also as a forum where concerns about the Union's values and responsibilities in the world can be expressed. The committee also recorded a significant increase in petitions concerning the rights of persons with disabilities, rising from 25 petitions in 2024 to 51 in 2025. This highlights the continued importance of accessibility, inclusion, and the implementation of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.
Another important tool for citizen participation is the European Citizens' Initiative, which allows one million citizens from at least seven member states to invite the Commission to propose EU legislation. In 2025, the committee continued to play an active role by organizing hearings on the initiatives "Cohesion policy for the equality of the regions and sustainability of the regional cultures" and "My Voice, My Choice: For Safe and Accessible Abortion". These initiatives demonstrate the wide range of issues on which citizens wish to contribute to shaping the European agenda. In carrying out its work, the committee held 10 meetings, discussed 145 petitions, welcomed the active participation of 97 petitioners, and conducted four fact-finding visits to Austria, Spain, and Portugal in order to gather first-hand information on issues raised by citizens.
...the role of petitions in the monitoring, the implementation and enforcement of EU law. Overall, the 2025 annual report once again confirms that petitions are a vital expression of participatory democracy and an important source of information about the concerns and expectations of European citizens. The substantial increase in petitions during 2025 is a clear sign of citizens' trust in European democracy and of their willingness to engage actively in shaping the future of our Union. I would like to conclude by thanking all colleagues for their commitment to the work of the committee. I look forward to a constructive and productive cooperation in the months ahead, particularly with all shadow rapporteurs as we work together on this report.
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